Is obesity a burden on society or a burden on the individual?
Hi,
Previously, I’ve asked this question: How can we ban fast food from the breakfast/lunch/dinner table?
On my blog : www. banfastfood.com I write against fast food as the primary choice for children and families.
Some people who responded to my first question spoke about the constitutional rights of people to eat what they want and that other people’s eating habit shouldn’t matter to others. Statistics prove that most people who eat fast food and the majority of the obese are working class individuals. Those are people who cannot afford health insurance; people who will crowd emergency rooms for emergency care; people who are less educated; people who will not be productive members of society because they will die of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc… Healthcare cost will continue to rise and the price of health insurance with it.
We regulate tobacco, street drugs and prescription drugs because drug addicts are a burden on society. Isn’t obesity?
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5 Responses to “Is obesity a burden on society or a burden on the individual?”
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Both. Obesity leads to greater health issues–diabetes, heart, respiratory. We all share health care costs through increases in insurance premiums. I belong to a risk pool that has obese individuals–my cost goes up, plain and simple, even though I’m healthy and my BMI is normal.
Gluttony is a sin. Obesity is unhealthy. And all of us pay for it.
Arguably, both.
Some people become overweight by excessive eating and it causes them to need more health care, which costs society money as a whole. Some might therefore say its there own fault and they should have to pay for it themselves. But if we applied that logic across the board we would have to make the same charge against millions of other people- and not just for smoking. People bring on their own health problems through their own lifestyle choices in many other ways. Look at people who work too hard and get sick due to stress. And what about sexually transmitted diseases? Or people who fail to manage their own mental health?
But I still believe that for millions of overweight people there is a genetic component to their affliction. Many people over eat tremendously and are inactive and sill do not reach the very high weights that some other people do. If it is true that there is a genetic component, then that would significantly change the whole debate.
To the questioner and the first answerer: I can’t stand people like you. You want to run the country? Run for office. I know several people who are obese and none of them are gluttons. There are many reasons for people being overweight other than fast food or overeating. If you really want to ease the burden on society, get on your overused soapbox and scream about illegal immigrants. You are self righteous morons.
edit: I see the 1st answerer is “dirty martini”. Oh, so you drink, huh? Are you an alcoholic? Oh, tsk, tsk! You are going to be a burden on society yourself. My, my!
Who do you think you are to judge other people and what they look like are you going to be crusified on a cross in the near future??? How can you say fat people are stupid and a burden on anyone??? who made you GOD??/ The fact of the matter is most people sit around on their *** to insted of being active that doesn’t make them the skum of the earth they just weren’t born with a personal trainer in their ***…
So what else is a burden on society? Thoughts that differ from the norm? From yours? A very scary precedent is being set by what you are advocating. So let’s see, should we have the salt police for people with high blood pressure, the sugar squad for diabetics and the trans fat patrol for those with high cholesterol?